Curated playlist
Asia-Pacific
- Southeast AsiaAn American pastor first used the term "Southeast Asia" in 1839. His definition left out the islands entirely.
- East AsiaMongolia has the lowest population density on Earth, while East Asia's coasts are among the most packed places.
- South AsiaSouth Asia is home to a quarter of all people alive on Earth.
- MelanesiaA French navigator coined the name Melanesia in 1832 from the Greek for black. Many people there now embrace it.
- OceaniaOf the major continental groupings, only Oceania is named for water. The sea links its islands.
- PolynesiaPolynesia is a subregion of Oceania made up of more than 1,000 islands, scattered across the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The dry land is small, yet the ocean around it is enormous. The triangle that holds these islands has sides of…
- North AsiaNorth Asia is the largest part of Asia by area, yet under one percent of Asians live there.
- Australia (continent)About 18,000 BC, Tasmania and New Guinea were joined to mainland Australia. Lower seas made one land called Sahul.
- MicronesiaMicronesia is a scatter of roughly 2,000 small islands in the Northwestern Pacific, and almost none of it is land. The ocean inside the perimeter of the islands covers 7,400,000 square kilometres, while all the dry ground together adds up…
- OrientThe word Orient once described Moscow and the Aztec court. Its meaning kept shifting east over centuries.
- Asia-Pacific Economic CooperationThe APEC costume tradition began when Bill Clinton handed out leather bomber jackets in 1993.